Seattle Restored revives Seattle neighborhoods with creativity and commerce! Seattle Restored calls our local artists and entrepreneurs to reinvigorate our city by activating empty storefronts. These pop-up and art installation activations benefit neighborhoods, small businesses, artists and property owners by creating vibrant and engaging streetscapes that encourage the public to visit downtown Seattle, support local businesses and artists – particularly Black, Indigenous, and other entrepreneurs and artists of color.
It’s KT! (📸: GrowingBoyMedia)
Hi, KT! Tell us about your business or artistic focus. As an artist working in mixed media, I primarily focus on combinations of metal and glass. I have been working with glass and metal for the last decade, but when COVID hit my work shifted to include neon. Neon has given me a creative outlet that doesn’t require a team and thus became more accessible than traditional glassblowing. There is something magical about neon and its illumination that I find so satisfying and wonderful to work with.
What’s a project you’re working on, and how can your Seattle Restored participation help you with it? Currently I am working on preparing for the inaugural Neon Symposium that is taking place at Pilchuck Glass School. My participation with Seattle Restored has already helped by giving me an avenue to show my neon work. I’m excited for the photographs that I have gotten through the program and plan to use them for future art calls. Affordable studio space and fiscal sponsorships are always wonderful things for artists.
What’s the most rewarding part of your artistic pursuits?
The most rewarding part of my artistic pursuits has always been when I am able to connect with an audience and they are able to relate to what I am saying within my artwork. I love making connections through art – they fuel my creative fire.
Danger! High Voltage is an installation incorporating luminous neon tubing and stainless steel high voltage towers. (📸: GrowingBoyMedia)
What are you looking forward to this year? This year has already been a great year. I’ve had the opportunity to do my installation for Seattle Restored, and received a scholarship to take a glass sculpting glass with the Del La Torre brothers at Pilchuck Glass School and started being represented by Raven Gallery in Aspen, Colorado. What is next for me will be quite a contender as I’ve been awarded a glass residency at Barrio Glassworks in California. I’m excited to be awarded the time to play and create my work!
What brings you most alive about working or living in Seattle? Seattle is a wonderful place if you are interested in working with glass. Living in Seattle has provided me exposure to many hotshops and glass making facilities. I’ve been able to blow glass at Pratt Fine Arts Center for years and that accessibility is an amazing feature of Seattle.
If you could give any one piece of advice to locals, what would it be? Visit the galleries and museums! We have a wonderful city full of art and it’s a real treat to be able to go into the galleries we have here in Seattle.
What’s your favorite Seattle Restored pop-up or art installation and why? My favorite Seattle Restored pop-up has to be Puddles Barkery. I love the creative treats that they make for our furry friends. As a dog mom I love being able to spoil my sweet girl with the treats from Puddles Barkery.
Read more about KT Hancock and check out the full details about her Seattle Restored art installation (Danger! High Voltage) on the Seattle Restored blog.